Education

Summer Learnin’… Tell Me More, Tell Me More

by Celia Goodyear

May 5, 2024

Celia Goodyear

CANNONBAAALLL!!

How E-School can Help Students Catch Up or Get Ahead Over the Summer Break

By Celia Goodyear

There are more than 29,000 students in Alachua County, and each one of them is unique with their own learning needs. Some learn better in the classroom, some learn better outside of it and others excel in both.

Regardless of those differences, every student has one thing in common. They can all benefit from e-learning opportunities, especially over the summer break.

Whether it is to get a head start on their college or career journey or make up for some mediocre grades during the year, every one of them can find something useful through online summer learning.

Flexible learning

Florida Virtual School Flex is one option for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. It is a flexible online school with more than 240,000 students across the state already taking classes.

“It’s a fantastic option for students who want to take courses over the summer–or any time of year– to accelerate their learning or catch up,” said DeAnne Watson, district relations manager for FLVS Flex. “It is open to homeschool students who want to customize their own schedule and curriculum or students who take the majority of their courses at a public or private school and want to supplement their learning.”

There are more than 190 classes offered through FLVS Flex. They include core curriculum and elective courses, as well as Advanced Placement. World languages and career and technical education courses are also available. Enrollment is available year-round.

“Students can learn to play the guitar, take a driver education class or learn a new language,” said Watson. “Our classes combine real-world learning opportunities with high-demand fields, allowing students to go beyond the classroom to explore their passions and shape their future success.”

FLVS was founded in 1997. It is accredited, and its classes are available to students in Florida and around the world. For more information about specific offerings and what prerequisites are required, go to https://www.flvs.net/.

Opportunities Abound

Alachua eSchool is another online platform where students can take classes during the summer.

Sustainable Futures

Its mission is to provide challenging, inspiring and engaging educational experiences to equip students with critical skills that promote the intellectual, social, emotional and physical growth needed to be highly successful in college and a career, as well as being productive citizens.

The students enrolled in Alachua eSchool are considered part of the Alachua County Public School District. For the elementary classes, the school partners with CANVAS, and for secondary classes, it partners with FLVS.

The school offers a flexible student-led schedule instead of a daily teacher-led one.

The available course offerings include: